David Beckham is ready to score big with supplements.
“The dream was to create one product that actually does it all,” the soccer legend said, phoning in from London fresh off a trip to Singapore.
On Monday, he’s doing just that by launching his supplement company IM8, available at IM8health.com in 31 countries, developed by health sciences company Prenetics. (Beckham is a cofounding partner of Prenetics.)
“The brand means I am and eight, if you flip it around, means longevity and infinite possibilities,” explained Prenetics and IM8 chief executive officer Danny Yeung.
The line includes Daily Ultimate Essentials, $79 for subscription or $99 for one-time purchase, a drink formula with 92 nutrients for overall health support, and Daily Ultimate Longevity, $75 for subscription and $95 for one-time purchase, a capsule to boost NAD+ levels for healthier aging. The duo also comes together in The Beckham Stack, $129 for subscription or $159 for one-time purchase. The red branding is a nod to one of Beckham’s former football clubs Manchester United.
IM8 products.
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According to Yeung, he and Beckham were connected via a mutual friend.
“[Prenetics has] been around for the last 10 years. We started off doing genetic testing [and] biotechnology. We were very instrumental during the COVID-19 period of time where we did all the PCR testing for the Premier League, Hong Kong airports and community centers,” Yeung said. “Our background in that, in the science, and also the work that we’re doing in early cancer detection intrigued David.”
For Prenetics, this partnership was a way to break into the consumer space. In addition to the Prenetics team, the IM8 products are developed with support from the brand’s scientific advisory board, including Mayo Clinic oncologist Dr. Dawn Mussallem; former NASA chief scientist Dr. James Green; Cedars-Sinai microbiome expert Professor Suzanne Devkota; preventative medicine and nutrition expert Dr. David Katz; University of Florida aging and physiology expert Professor Stephen Anton; cardiovascular research scientist Dr. James Dinicolantonio, and University of Connecticut nutritional sciences expert Professor Ock K. Chun.
While Beckham has fronted campaigns across industries, including fashion as a Boss ambassador, he hasn’t been known to tout many wellness brands, making this a significant partnership.
“There’s been so many brands that have wanted to work with him,” Yeung said. “He’s rejected them all, and this is a very unique opportunity for us.”
The brand also aligns well with Beckham’s background as a professional athlete.
“As a former athlete, caring about the health side is obviously something that has been a huge part of my life for a long time,” he said. “We always were either given supplements or advice on what supplements to take, but obviously, since my retirement, I don’t have that…I’ve always taken supplements and vitamins, and I’m very aware of how confusing the space is.”
Without this level of professional attention, Beckham was seeking an all-in-one solution that was easy to remember taking, noting that his wife Victoria Beckham often says he’s always forgetting to take his supplements. For Beckham, IM8 is the perfect solution, as the brand claims its Daily Ultimate Essentials product replaces 16 different supplements. It’s also a mixable, açai and mixed berry flavor drink powder.
Beckham with Daily Ultimate Essentials
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Daily Ultimate Essentials includes 92 nutrients, including vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, superfoods, greens, fruits, adaptogens, pre-, pro- and post-biotics and the brand’s patent-pending Cell Rejuvenation Technology 8, made up of seaweed extracts, berberine, trans-resveratrol, urolithin A, algae powder and spermidine, all known for their longevity benefits. There are also clinical doses of CoQ10 for heart health and MSM for joint health.
“It gives you eight key benefits: energy; immunity; heart health; joint and muscle [health]; digestion, skin, hair, nail [health]; hydration, [and] brain health,” Yeung said.
Beckham, who says he always travels with the product, added: “I’ve been taking it now for a good few months. My energy levels have completely changed in a good way. My focus, which is not always great, throughout the day is so much stronger.”
It’s not just Beckham who has seen results. The brand tapped San Francisco Research Institute to conduct a 12-week randomized clinical trial with 60 participants that showed most people experienced a significant improvement in daily energy, physical endurance, hair, skin and nail health, and digestion.
While Daily Essentials is the brand’s hero product, IM8 is also launching with its Daily Ultimate Longevity capsule.
Beckham with Daily Ultimate Longevity.
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“That’s going to be product for individuals that [are] 35 to 40 [and] above. You’re getting up there and so you just need a little bit more help in terms of aging support,” said Yeung, adding that the brand will eventually have additional stock keeping units, though the assortment will remain highly curated. “We’re looking to research sports nutrition.
For Beckham and the IM8 team, tapping into his platform and large following will be crucial. Beckham has been known to showcase his wellness routine on social media, particularly his sauna and cold plunge ritual at his country home.
“My wife and my friends laugh at me a lot. When I go down to my house in the countryside at the weekends, I’m either in the sauna or the cold tub doing ice baths. They’re like, ‘Well, you can do it, but you don’t have to show everyone,’” he joked. “But people want to see it.”
In addition to Beckham, the brand has also tapped an array of creators in the health and wellness space, including pro athletes, with a combined following of more than 35 million followers to promote the brand. IM8 will also host live events to introduce the product to more people.
While Yeung couldn’t comment on specific sales figures, as Prenetics is a public company, he said: “The vitamin [and] dietary supplement space is globally a $170 billion opportunity, $40 billion of that is in the U.S. market. I do believe IM8 can itself, in the next three to five years, be a multibillion-dollar brand.”
When asked where he hopes the brand is one year from now, Beckham said: “The ultimate goal [is that] it improves people’s lives, and they feel better through this supplement.”
